X‐ray diffraction from the uniaxial and biaxial nematic phases of bent‐core mesogens

Abstract

X‐ray diffraction patterns for the uniaxial and biaxial nematic phases exhibited by rigid bent‐core mesogens were calculated using a simple model for the molecular form factor and a modified Lorentzian structure factor. The X‐ray diffraction patterns depend strongly on the extent of the alignment of the molecular axes as well as the orientation of molecular planes. The X‐ray diffraction can be unequivocally used to identify the biaxial nematic phase, study the uniaxial–biaxial phase transition, and estimate the order parameters of the nematic phase.